Electrical Upgrade Considerations

[elav]

I have 100 Amp service to my house and my attached two car garage has little more than two light sockets in it. I've decided that I'm going to upgrade the main service panel and should probably add a sub-panel in the attached garage. I have an air compressor, table saw, a mill/drill and could possibly see the clothes dryer making it out to the garage someday and perhaps a welder.

I'm assuming I should up the main service panel to 200 Amps. Would running a 100 Amp panel be insane? Should I consider 60 Amps or something less? Thanks for any help in advance!

Alan

 

[ishiboo]

I have 100 Amp service to my house and my attached two car garage has little more than two light sockets in it. I've decided that I'm going to upgrade the main service panel and should probably add a sub-panel in the attached garage. I have an air compressor, table saw, a mill/drill and could possibly see the clothes dryer making it out to the garage someday and perhaps a welder.

I'm assuming I should up the main service panel to 200 Amps. Would running a 100 Amp panel be insane? Should I consider 60 Amps or something less? Thanks for any help in advance!

Alan

Cheapest/easiest IMO is to run 2-2-2-4 SER which will give you 90a to the sub panel, with a 100A sub panel. This is ultra-inexpensive and will give you a lot of flexibility.

 

[Falcon67]

Put 200 in the house and 100 in the garage, but breaker the 100A panel at the house with whatever - 90, 75 or so. 2-2-2-4 aluminum is pretty cost effective for a feed and is good for 90A. I have all that you list (less dryer) plus a 5kW electric heater. The old shop was fused at 60A, the new one at 75A. No feed breaker trips ever. I did 75A on the new shop because HD had the breaker on the shelf for $45 and a 90A was special order. Oh - I now also run a well pump of some unknown HP (probably around 1HP) off the new shop.

 

[rburke65]

You can install the 200 amp panel in the house, but you will still have only 100amp. available. You are aware that you would have to upgrade....increase.... the wire size of your service entrance wire to get the 200 amp size? Not being a smart *** here. You said "upgrade the panel". Just trying to help.

 

[Falcon67]

LOL - At the old house: When I upgraded our panel and service drop to handle 200A, AEP didn't give a **** about it. They used the same air drop that was on the 100A. Yes, they had a work order stating what and why on the service pull and re-attached, and the tech inspected the work before tieing us back in.

 

[PRH44]

If you do choose to upgrade your service to a 200 amp. You can use your old 100 amp panel in the garage save a few bucks.

 

[rancherbill]

I'm assuming I should up the main service panel to 200 Amps. Would running a 100 Amp panel be insane? Should I consider 60 Amps or something less? Thanks for any help in advance!

Alan

Based on what you say you want to do in the garage a 60 would work unless you wanted to serious 50 amp welding and dry clothes at the same time. So I'd probably put in the 100 because you don't have to buy a lot of wire because you have an attached garage.

On upgrading the main panel I'd check how much you are actually using right now using an amp meter.

 

[elav]

You can install the 200 amp panel in the house, but you will still have only 100amp. available. You are aware that you would have to upgrade....increase.... the wire size of your service entrance wire to get the 200 amp size? Not being a smart *** here. You said "upgrade the panel". Just trying to help.

This comment is appreciated. This will all be done with permits and the electric company will upgrade the wires from the pole to support 200 amp service.

With that said, I now believe that 100 amp sub panel is overkill and I have space in my current main panel to add the breaker for a sub panel. So I might consider keeping my main panel and just running a sub panel. We'll see what the quotes come back as. Thanks!